


Girls And Aliens

by Rolaplayor101



Category: Ben 10 Series
Genre: Aggressively Arospec Week, Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Humor, Angst with a Happy Ending, Aphobia, Aroflux, Aromantic, Aromantic Awareness Week, Arospec character, Best Friends, Break Up Talk, Canon Compliant, F/M, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Gen, Humor, Lovers to Friends, Male-Female Friendship, Other, Platonic Female/Male Relationships, Platonic Male/Male Relationships, Platonic Relationships, Polyamorous Character, Polyamory, Queer platonic relationships, Self-Acceptance, Self-Esteem Issues, Yearning, amatonormativity, aro creatives, aromantic Ben Tennyson, aromantic spectrum awareness week, arophobia, bellusromantic, idemromantic, lithromantic, nonsam aro, quoiromantic, recipromantic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-21
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-18 14:14:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,640
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29610639
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rolaplayor101/pseuds/Rolaplayor101
Summary: My name’s Ben Tennyson, you’ve heard of me, and I’m aroflux.orBen goes about his typical day-- drinking smoothies, patrolling, helping Max, fighting crime-- while thinking about his experience as aroflux
Relationships: Ben Tennyson & Everyone, Ben Tennyson & Julie Yamamoto, Ben Tennyson & Max Tennyson, Ben Tennyson & Sandra Tennyson, Ester & Kai Green, Ester/Elena Validus, Kai Green & Ben Tennyson, Kevin Levin & Ben Tennyson, Kevin Levin & Ben Tennyson & Gwen Tennyson, Rook Blonko & Ben Tennyson, ben tennyson & Ester, elena validus/Kai Green/ Ester, kai green/ester
Comments: 5
Kudos: 8
Collections: Arospec Fanworks Week





	Girls And Aliens

**Author's Note:**

> A short and sweet oneshot for Arospec Awareness Week day one!

Ah, yes, sleep. A rare commodity, is my first coherent thought as I wake up. I blink up at the ceiling, listening to the silence of my room and the soft chirping outside my window. A dreamless sleep. It must be my lucky day. Getting any kind of sleep was hard enough on its own, but to _not_ have nightmares waking me up in the middle of the night was a notion so glorious I could cry out in delight at just the thought. Imagine my satisfaction right now after having achieved it!

It's already so bright outside. Flecks of light move across my room in slow motion via a stream of sunshine as I sit up and wipe the pads of my middle fingers over the sides of my eyes and trace down my face, trying to remove the sudden exhaustion I feel. I'd love to sleep in, but I know for a fact that if I try to go back to sleep then I won't be so lucky this time around. I have stuff to do today.

I check my phone. 8:30 AM. Nice. I groan, wipe my eyes again, and get up. Another wave of exhaustion rises over me despite the fact that I had felt right as rain the moment I woke up. That was short-lived. As usual. I yawn, stretch, scratch an itch.

I'm Ben Tennyson. Maybe you've heard of me? I'm the one who saved the universe three times. I know, I know, brag much? But it's true, I promise. You probably don't remember most of them because you weren't there, but I swear it happened.

I walk into the bathroom, do my business, start brushing my teeth.

I wasn't alone, though. I had my partners Gwen, Kevin, and Rook by my side. Mostly. We are a part of the Plumbers. I know, the name is strange, but it's not like that. I fight aliens for a living. Yes, I am getting paid. But that has no bearing on it. I do it cause I want to.

...Mm, or maybe cause I have to, to be more accurate. I'd say no one is forcing me to do it, but that'd be a lie. Sometimes people are forcing me to do it, and other times I'm doing it all on my own because I want to. It's my duty.

...And _now_ I'll stop with the bathroom jokes, I think as I spit into the sink and put my toothbrush into its slot. I leave the bathroom to go back to my room and get changed.

Anyway, I'm a newly-turned nineteen year old boy working for a superhero organization, what of it? That's not all I do. I mean, yeah, I'm a world-renowned teen sensation and on probably a thousand hit lists across the universe, but I also have a personal life.

A ring sounds around my room and I quickly put on my trademarked green and white jacket and rush to my phone to check the text. It's from Ester. See? My own life. Oh, Ester's my..ex? Sort of? Anyway, she's asking if we're still on for today. We're supposed to meet in… let me check... In an hour. Today was one of my days off and we hadn't seen each other in a long while, so we decided to hang out for a bit today. We're still friends. It's not like we were really dating. And honestly, I was kinda relieved to hear that she was dating Antonio instead. We both had some growing and figuring ourselves out to do. She's a really cool girl, and I'm a really cool guy, and together we're really cool friends.

I go back into the bathroom to style my hair and when I'm done with that I get my stuff ready to leave. It took a while for us to start talking again. It was a bit awkward. Eight months after we stopped hanging out, she texted me and came out. Right there. Over text. First thing she'd said to me. June 26, 2015. Perfect day for that, huh? Opened my eyes a little bit, in more ways than one. Very very memorable.

"Bye Sandra, Carl!" I say as I pass by the kitchen.

"Wait!" My mom calls. I stop and turn around as she pops her head out of the kitchen. "I made breakfast, you're not going to eat?"

"I'm getting breakfast with a friend today."

She pouts. "But you're never at _home_ anymore! I haven't seen you in what feels like forever..."

That's because I rarely come home. I usually stay at HQ or patrol all night. And it's not because I hate my parents or anything, but.. I dunno. There's always stuff to do. The house feels stuffy after spending four years crossing the entire expanse of the universe.

"I'll be back for dinner, Sandra." I promise, then leave.

No aliens attacking the neighborhood? Check. I look around, left, right, before walking to my car and getting in. No random villain waiting in the backseat to kill me? Check. I pull out into the road and drive to Mr. Smoothies. Bad morning traffic? Check. No bad guys attacking the city? Check. No paparazzi? I check my rear view mirror.

Sigh.

I take a turn, then another turn, a right turn, drive straight, another right turn.

They're worse than the bad guys. They're bad guys all on their own. It's like _I'm_ the alien here or something. Though, Bellwood has gotten used to aliens by now. Or they should have. I mean, until he got fired, Will Harangue was a alien news anchor. He sucked, but people watched him anyway.

The amount of attacks on Bellwood were less but I still wouldn't call them rare. If it weren't Bellwood then it was me they were straight up going after and either way I'd be up all night. If the villains would just not do bad things then I wouldn't have to get in their way! It's as easy as that! None of them seem to get it. Besides Charmcaster, Hex, and the Vreedle brothers. They all came around. Albedo also calmed down after he got his alien form back, outside of that little hiccup two years ago. I guess I can say that things have gotten a bit better around here. Or maybe I'm just numb to it. Who knows. Who _cares_? Either way, I always win. I _have_ to win. And that's that on that.

I finally lose the cameramen and make my way to Mr. Smoothies. The weather is cold in early February even when its sunny so instead of sitting outside at my favorite table like I usually do, I go inside for once and get a table. Not many people here this early. Light music plays in the background. The sound of the heater blasting and the soda machine whirling mostly blankets it, but it creates a nice atmosphere.

I text Ester to tell her I'm here and as I wait I order myself a smoothie.

She arrives shortly after my drink comes, and she looks exactly the same. I haven't seen her in person in probably about a year. Last time we met up it was to help in a big fight in Undertown. We only ever text each other nowadays. I've seen her in selfies she's sent me, but meeting up face to face had become rare for me to do with most of my friends. Julie, for example. She's studying abroad at college. And Alan.. man, he should be fourteen by now. He's going to school _and_ Plumber's Academy.

But Ester, she doesn't look like she's grown a bit. She has the same hairstyle and height as when we first met. She's wearing a thigh-length white dress with a pink leather jacket with white fur on the collar, and bright pink leggings with boots to match her jacket. She has a cat face-shaped purse in her hands as she walks up to me with a wide, pink, full-lipped grin.

"Hey there, Stranger," She says, putting her hand on her hip.

I smile up at her cooly and give her a lazy piece sign, one arm over the back of my chair as the other flops back down over the side of my seat. "What's up? Who are you getting all fancy for?"

She sits down, kicks my foot playfully while also telling me to move it. I sit up. "You know what they say about people that can't sit right?"

"I sure do." I say and take a sip of my smoothie as she orders non-smoothie-form breakfast food.

"What did you order?" She asks.

"Breakfast in a Bottle." I take another sip.

Her face tightens insurmountably. "Please don't tell me—"

"Pancakes, maple syrup, sausage, and hash brown all blended together, baby!"

She fakes a loud gag as I laugh through my cockiest grin. "Are you _sure_ you're not a alien?"

"I mean, my grandma's an anodite. What does that tell you?"

"Absolutely nothing."

"What have you been up to?" I ask. "How's Antonio? Kai? Elena? You still together?"

"We're still together. Antonio's good. Getting used to his new job. We can barely meet but once a week now~," She drawls out the _now_ with a pouty face and puts her cheek in her hand. "Sad. Kai and Elena still don't want to see you. Elena still gets nervous whenever I bring you up. Kai gets annoyed."

"As expected."

"Yeah." She's looking to her side in thought, purple eyes wide and pink lips pursed like a ducks. "They've been filling in the boyfriend-sized hole in my heart as I get used to Antonio not being around." She wraps her unbelievably thin arms around herself, dramatically. "They're so cute, Ben, how could you have ever let those two go!"

"Well, I never dated either one of them, and when Elena had a thing for me neither of us were very keen on the idea of polyamory." I say matter-of-factly as I take a long drag of my Breakfast in a Bottle.

"That's so _weird_ , cause she was so into the idea of dating me and Kai when I brought it up! Maybe I'm just better than you!" She grins and shrugs with her palms face up, her cockiness level akin to mine.

"I don't doubt it." I grin back. "And Antonio? He'll get mad that we're hangin' again."

She motions with her hand as she scoffs. "Pfft. We don't control who we choose to hang out with. He knows your aromantic, and I'm polyamorous so he wouldn't care even if that _were_ the case."

Remember when I said Ester coming out opened my eyes in more way than one? Well...yeah. It was definitely a memorable day. June 26th, 2015. What a perfect, _memorable_ day to come out.

And, because I can't stand being shown up, December 27th, 2015, my eighteenth birthday, six months after her, I also came out.

Fun fun fun, clap clap clap, and all that.

My parents are pretty open-minded. I think they knew something was up. I mean, it was 2015. _Everyone_ came out in 2015. It was a mass coming out and a mass of weddings and a mass of.. well, a lot of bad stuff happened in 2015, too. I only came out to close friends and family and it was also the end of the year so I'd had the heads up on knowing NOT to go viral on the internet. Would've been a heck of a lot of fuel for the lizard anchor.

And how would that even go?

_My name's Ben Tennyson— you've heard of me— and I'm aroflux._

Yeah, right.

"What have _you_ been up to?" Ester asks, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Being aro, fighting crimes."

"A lot less of that lately."

"Thank God." I roll my eyes in exasperation. "I make up for it by being extra aro."

"You haven't dated in, what, a year? Two? How's the single life?"

" _Glorious_." I breathe out, lay back in my chair again. "The villains come around every once in awhile, gotta give them credit for that."

"Are the villains potential partners or bad guys trying to destroy the earth?"

"I don't see why we need to differentiate."

She laughs. "Corporate wants you to find the difference between the two pictures—"

"—They're the same picture." We say in unison and laugh. I look up at the ceiling as the waiter comes and gives Ester her food. I take another long drag. "Yeah, ever since you rejected me..I think..? I haven't dated anyone. So two years."

"I'm a heartbreaker," She puts a hand over her heart and pouts playfully.

"Yeah, you are." I stretch my arms out then let them drop to my side. "Don't take it weird. But I did like you, back then."

Looking up at the ceiling then back down at her, I see her suck her cheeks in and furrow her thick white eyebrows. She's a very pretty woman. That's for sure. She has long, artificially-pink eyelashes and wide, naturally-purple eyes that had a lot of mischief in them. It was hard to miss. She is an honest woman, no doubt. Brutally honest, to tell the truth, and she carries herself well. Her skin was a hot pink and without human faults. A light purple birthmark curved on both sides of her cheekbones, and she had fuller lips now then she did two year ago. I'd seen them in the photos she texted me, but it was different, up close. They were real, and they moved when she talked. The birthmarks too. She's an alien. I almost dated an alien.

 _Huh_.

"Just a little bit."

"Did you know?"

"Huh?"

"That you were aro..flux? Flux, right?"

"Aroflux, right."

"Did you know you were aroflux when you were with me?"

"Yeah, no, I had no idea. I just thought I was a regular straight guy. Bi-questioning, maybe."

"Mm."

"I mean, I like girls. Kinda.. I think. Sometimes. Maybe? I do? Or do I?"

She takes a bite out of her piping hot oatmeal. I can see the steam rising to the ceiling as clear as the Omnitrix on my wrist. "Ok, _now_ you're joking."

"Am I though? Am I?" I laugh and sit up straight, taking one last sip from my smoothie.

We spend the rest of our time together talking and eating and catching up. Hours pass by and soon enough I have to leave. I take a smoothie to go and Ester holds the door open for me as we walk out. She comments on how tall I've gotten. She's tall herself, but she can be whatever height she wants to be whenever she wants. She gives me a warm hug, tugs on my chin to comment on the "more mature" shape of my face, and waves as she walks off.

I get in my car and get ready for some afternoon patrolling. It's my day off as long as I take a look around Bellwood and help Grandpa Max out with something later. _Leave Undertown to Rook,_ Grandpa Max said. I'd take it.

Rook and I don't hang out as much anymore. We still get along and we're still friends and everything. We just don't talk as often. Actually, that's pretty much me with everyone, nowadays. Everyone's either at college, living on the other side of the country/world, or too busy with their own lives. Which, understandable. I get it. It's _fine_ , it's just.. different. It's different. Part of growing older. Gwen, Kevin, and I still visit each other. They make the silence bearable. Kevin still makes fun of me for coming out on Gwen's birthday(even though we have the same birthday). Gwen was supportive when I came out. Said, " _I guess it makes sense...no. Actually. It explains a lot."_ Kevin said, _"If you had told me earlier, I would have gotten you a flag."_ He corrected himself. _"It wouldn't have been a pride flag. It would say, 'I'm the slowest, most oblivious man in the world'."_

Kevin hadn't even known it was a thing until a minute before.

I drive around town, keeping an eye out for anything suspicious.

I kinda like girls. Not very much boys, for that matter. I think girls are cute. They're still attractive to me. I can easily spot whether a girl's physically appealing or just nice to look at. And I've had girls I've wanted to date! I have dated before! I really liked Julie when I was with her. She had the prettiest smile and the cutest, high-pitched voice. Just seeing her could brighten my day. I was always so nervous around her. I wanted to impress her so bad. I really wanted her to like me. She was fun, and talking with her felt natural back then. When we got together, I felt so lucky. She liked me even though I was about the strangest guy in the world. I liked her so much. I liked holding her hand. She was always so warm. And when she kissed my cheek on the first day of school, I felt like I was flying. And when I got the hint that Ester liked me, I was _thrilled_. She was so cool and I hadn't even needed to do anything. Then there was Eunice, and she was so, so, so pretty. And she looked up at me and flipped her hair and smiled at me. _Me_ , specifically! I was stunned. She was so nice and easy to talk to, in a way Julie wasn't, and she was _beautiful_. But those feelings never last.

Being with Julie started to feel like a weight. We were always fighting, all the time, and I couldn't keep any of my promises to her, but she kept _forgiving me_ and I felt like the worst. I'd heard of the "spark" going away, but we hadn't even been dating for that long before I wasn't attracted to her at all anymore. There was nothing there. My feelings for her felt the same as the feelings I had for my friends and family, and I didn't want to lose a dear friend. But back then I didn't know that was how I felt. And Ester, after that first little hint that she could like me...I didn't feel anything for her after that. Again, I just liked hanging out with her. I still went on 'dates' with her, thinking that this was just how this kind of thing goes, but it didn't work out either. It happened so much quicker that time than with Julie or Eunice. Like, the very next time I saw her. And Eunice.. as soon as she left with Azmuth, all the romantic feelings I had for her left too. And I thought that was normal. But I wasn't attracted to her at all, anymore. I mean, yeah, I still think she's cute, but dating or romance was out of the question. Every girl I liked or who was interested in me that I tried dating, I always lost interest in.

And I hated that part of myself for it. I ignored it for the longest time, but it always bothered me. Why couldn't I like anyone for long? Why couldn't I keep that steady flow going? Rook and Rayona would spend months apart and still love each other. And here I am, wishy-washy and hurting all the girls I liked. I'm ruining all of my relationships like this, why can't I _feel_ anything _more?_

That's how I used to feel.

It takes hours to finish up patrolling. Nothing too out of the ordinary happened. I stopped a creep from intimidating some women. Helped a grandma cross the road. Got a kite out of a tree. Whatever. Afterward, I go to Plumber's headquarters and meet up with Grandpa Max to help him move some boxes.

"You doing alright, son?"

"Yes, Grandpa Max."

"You been eating alright? Sleeping OK?" He asks.

"Yes, Grandpa Max." I lift up a box and start moving it out into the buggy in the hallway.

Grandpa Max and I have a stunted relationship right now. It's gotten really hard for me to feel comfortable talking to him. It started probably after my eighteenth birthday. No, actually, it started way before that. When we would get into arguments about the right way to work on missions or how I should fight and carry myself. How I wasn't doing enough, or how I was doing too much. He was especially hard on me in comparison to even the youngest plumbers, or the seniors. But it all seemed to blow up on my birthday.

He probably had the worse reaction out of everyone, and it wasn't even that bad. It's not the worse thing anyone's ever said to a aro person. Actually, it was pretty tame. I wouldn't have thought twice if it was just some random guy on the street:

_"But I wish you had someone.. that's so sad. Love is such a wonderful thing everyone should experience..! You should find someone soon that can—"_

But it was _him_ this was coming from. He hadn't even been _listening_ to what I had been saying! And who was _he_ to say something like that? He hadn't been able to keep any of his past loves! Just thinking about it makes my face burn.

I pick up another box, carry it outside.

After that, I stopped talking to him. I try not to engage in conversation with him if I can help it. I'm not mad at him, I'm just...sad.

I'm just sad.

I was the one that found out I can't love the same way other people do, and he thinks _he's_ the one that's sad? Well, yeah, I find it sad too! I want a girlfriend, or a long-lasting partner! I mean, in the future I'm supposed to end up with Kai, right? But it's not like Kai or I have told Elena or Ester about that! Flirting with her is a joke neither of us takes seriously. It's not like I even _want_ Kai, not like I'd choose it to be her if I had a choice. But that's the problem, isn't it? I can't choose. It's not a choice.

I. Can't. _Feel anything._

So yeah, I stopped talking to Grandpa Max. That's it. I'm not expecting an apology or anything like that. I'm just..waiting. Waiting for this uneasiness to go away. Maybe it will go away with time without having to have a conversation about it. Hopefully.

I pick up another box. Then another. Then another.

"Oh! Put that one over on _that_ one, actually."

I nod, then do that.

"Could you get this one?"

I do.

"Oh, can you hand me the tape?"

I do.

Then forty-five minutes to an hour passes by, and there's a loud crashing sound and an alarm sounds.

A red light is blinking overhead and Max shouts my name. I nod and turn the Omnitrix to XLR8.

I rush to the scene, turning corner to corner before entering the room right before a boulder can crush me. In the crash zone, standing atop the debris, is a rhinoceros-anteater hybrid and Dr. Animo on top of it, loud confident smile on his face as a bunch of fish-monkeys come in and start tearing open jail cells. Or, they try to, but I'm too fast for them. The plumbers already in the room shoot at Animo but there's rays seem to have no effect on him.

Another regular day, I sigh. I grab all the monkeys, push them into a corner using my speed, running circles around them, before quickly turning into spider monkey and using my web to trap them together. But more keep coming, so I abandon the cornering plan and start wrapping them up by the dozen. I turn into Bloxx and trap them inside, then have some plumbers take care of them. Two of the prisoners have broken out, and Animo is not helping, so I grab one of the escaped villains and aim real good, and throw him at Animo. Animo falls off the hybrid and lands hard on the debris. Before either of them can get up, I'm on them.

Ok, so back to daydreaming.

It's not like I'm incapable of love. I love my friends. Gwen, Kevin, Rook. I wouldn't be where I am right now without them. I wouldn't be _alive_ without them. They're my best friends. And I refuse to believe that they're any less than a romantic partner.

Gwen, Kevin, and I.. we're family. Gwen and me literally, but that's besides the point.

I mean, Kevin and I have tried to kill each other a bunch of times now, but not _recently_. We're buddies in arms. We'd do anything for each other.

When he and Gwen left for college, it felt like it'd be the end of me. I love those guys. I felt like I could do _anything_ with them around. If that meant less than dating to other people, then I don't care what they think.

Something blows up again and in the midst of the fight, I turn around to see Rook grappling down from the ceiling vent.

"Took you long enough!" I yelled up at him, grinning.

"I was on patrol!" He shouted back down. "Brought some company!" And also grappling down behind him from the destroyed vent was a fleet of plumbers.

Yeah. And Rook was alright.

By the time I got home, dinner was already ready.

They'd just sat down to eat when I ran inside, passing by the dinner table, clothes ripped and dirty and bag in my hand. "Wait! Wait a minute!" I shouted as I climbed the stairs. "I'll be right there!"

"Take your time!" My mother shouted back.

The dinner was delicious.

It's evening and the sun is still in the midst of going down. The sky is dark from my window, with just a hint of orange from the sunset. I watch as the sky gradually gets darker and darker, laying with my arms behind my head. Tomorrow will probably be an even busier day. Sad, I think, just as my phone buzzes and sounds off. I check it to see that it's...Kai. Huh. I thought maybe it was Ester the Witch having heard me use her phrase in my thoughts. I haven't heard from Kai since my last birthday. She doesn't text often. Before that was when I came out to her.

It's a photo of her with Elena under her arm, held against her chest. Kai is looking up into the camera with her tongue out and Elena is blushing furiously, obviously caught off guard with her eyes squeezed shut and a frown on her face. The caption under it says: _Heard you were jealous, huh, aro boy?_

I text her back: _oh, for sure. Definitely, yeah._

_Too bad you missed out on us lmaoooo, I got the two best girlfriends in the world ❤_

_Apparently I didn't miss out if Spanner is anything to go by lmaooooo_

_In your dreams lmaooooo_

_Lmaooo you wish!_

A minute passes by without a text back so I let my hand fall to the bed with my phone held tightly in it.

Kai is great. Honestly, if I had a type, she'd be just it. Just a little. I wouldn't tell her that, though. We weren't good together but we were good together, you know? It's fun joking with her, until it gets serious. I can never seem to see where that line is. It's all fun and games until it's not. But I still like her. She's chill. I don't know about marriage though. Maybe it was for tax benefits? I'll have to ask myself in the future when I see him again.

I mean, if I were to get married, I'd want someone nicer, ya know? Like, I dunno, someone like Eunice. Or Julie.

...Maybe not Julie.

...Crap. _Julie_.

The last time I talked to Julie, I...

Geez, it feels like I've messed up almost every single one of my friendships.

I tried dating every girl I liked or the ones interested in me throughout high school but I always lost interest. Julie was the longest relationship I ever had, and arguably the most toxic. I couldn't even be friends with her afterwards.

Earlier, I said that Grandpa Max had the worse reaction out of everyone to me coming out as aroflux. But no, that's not right at all. It was Julie. If Grandpa's hurt, then Julie ripped my heart out and ate it right in front of me.

It sucked.

It sucked a lot.

I let out a little laugh. Crap...crap crap crap...

Julie was back in time for the holidays. She'd gotten through the semester with high grades, a boyfriend, and speaking almost fluent French. It was cold, kinda like today, and I wanted to say hi to her. I mean, even though we broke up, we were still friends, right? She was the only one I hadn't come out to, but I thought it would be best to tell her in person, like I'd done for my other close friends. And we'd been through so much together, I thought we were close...

_Wow... You really are an alien, huh?_

She looked at me with disbelief. _You could have just said you didn't like me, but now you're gonna make some labels up? To try and excuse what you were like to me?_

_No, that's not—_

No _, Ben! Why can't you just be honest for once? How can you not like anyone? No, I'm tired of this, I'm tired of you— Go home!_

_I—_

_GO HOME!_

"Ha..haha..." I sniff, feeling my eyes watering. "What the heck..?"

It's so strange... I feel so strange. Why is it that I..

I look down at the Omnitrix.

Alien, huh? I mean, I am, aren't I? I sniff again, feeling pathetic. My grandmother's an alien. That's not an insult. So then why..?

I mean, could it be the Omnitrix? Is that why I can't fall in love? Do aliens feel love? I mean, in the movies they can't, right? They don't understand it. And did Verdona even really love Max? Is that why it was so easy for her to leave him? Is that why Max wants me to have a partner, so I don't make someone end up like he did?

It took me so, _so_ long to figure out what I am. I went through _so many_ labels. It was so easy for me to become close friends with guys. Kevin, Rook, Rex. I thought maybe I was bi. But I never felt attracted to them like I did with women. So I thought I was just straight, but that didn't fit right either. And then Ester came out, then Kai and Elena started dating her, then Sunny got back together with Antonio but Antonio was still with Ester so he came out? So then when I was thinking about it I randomly looked up how I felt and I found lithromantic. And after that, idemromantic, then quoiromantic. Recipromantic. Bellusromantic. And there were all labels that made _sense_ to me. That _fit_ me. And then I discovered aroflux and that was it! There were others like me, and as typical as it sounds, I wasn't alone. I didn't join any forums or anything, but I kept the words close to my heart and I read about other people's experiences and they were all different but we were all the _same_ and, I don't know, I felt _powerful_. Like there wasn't something wrong with me.

I'm Ben Tennyson, I'm nineteen, I'm a superhero, I'm aroflux with a preference towards women. I _might_ feel queerplatonic attraction towards dudes. What's so hard about that?

I wipe my eyes. Right. Yeah. There's nothing wrong with me. I can have meaningful, non- strictly-romantic relationships. I know this. I know this! I'm awesome! I've saved the universe three times! I'm Ben Tennyson! And you know what? Aliens _can_ feel love, Julie! Because Looma and Attea are engaged, and I was invited, and not YOU! Why do I deserve to have low self-esteem for something I can't control? And yeah, I admit it! I was a bad boyfriend! I messed up, a lot! That's my bad! Maybe if the education system was better and I was taught the word aromantic earlier then I would have been able to avoid all the trouble we went through trying to work! But yeah, it's still my fault and I'm sorry and ughhh I don't even know what I'm yelling about anymore! No one is here to hear my thoughts but me!

I groan aloud and grab my pillow from under my head and slam it onto my face, screaming into it.

The muffled sound of my phone ringing and the bed buzzing under me momentarily distracts me from my dramatic act of tragic despair. I grab it and check the text.

It's another picture: this time Ester is in it. Kai is holding the camera up and has one arm around Elena, who is embracing her back with her arms around her and her hands clasped on Kai's shoulder. Both of them are smiling. In the back, Ester is holding onto what looks like a really buff arm and she looks like she was jumping mid-take because she's a bit blurry. The caption under it says _Antonio came back early to surprise her!_

A second text is under it.

_P.S. Invite us to hang out next time!_

I sigh, place my arm over my forehead.

I really kinda like girls.

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading, I have a tumblr if you wanna see art for Aroflux Ben, QPR BenRex, and more Elena/Kai/Ester polyam stuff!!! I had to write this quickly to get it out for asaw so sorry its rushed! Please leave a comment!
> 
> PS Julie isn't a bad person, she looked it up afterwards and hasn't gotten the chance to apologize yet because she feels awkward and is out of the country.


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